Chicken essence has traditionally been known to boost energy levels, combat fatigue and strengthen the immune system when consumed regularly. That’s what I’ve been told by the Man and the MIL but I really don’t agree with the taste for mass consumer brands for chicken essence that is widely available at most supermarkets. My mom never really gave it to us to boost our energy levels growing up. And when I tried it in my later years as an adult. I really balked at – first, the colour of the mixture and secondly, the taste. I couldn’t really fathom why would people drink this dark mixture which looked like cough syrup gone wrong. No offense to any particular brand of conventional chicken essence, it’s just a personal preference. I later learned that it tasted better if the mixture up but well, first impressions do count and I couldn’t bring myself to try it again.

Which was why during my pregnancy years ago, I resorted to making my own chicken essence to help with my energy levels as well as to nourish my body. I have to add that it was really tedious for one entire chicken goes into the boiler to make a small bowl of essence. But I treasured every bowl of essence that my helper and my MIL helped to make for it really did help me get through the day at work without feeling overly tired and grouchy.

Fast forward some 5 years later, moms-to-be and adults for that matter will be really happy to know that there is now a much convenient way to get your chicken essence without having to rough it out in the kitchen!

I’ve heard of Hao Yi Kang from mummies as well as working moms. The packaging looks convenient for people-on-the-go. But more importantly, will I be able to get past the taste? I had been feeling poorly on and off for the past couple of months and was desperate to get my health back in order. So I purchased a box of chicken essence from Hao Yi Kang to try.

Verdict? Well, I got past the colour of the mixture. It had a natural yellow colour (reminded me of the chicken essence that was homemade) and taste-wise, it was extremely palatable on for my liking. I’ve gone on to purchase boxes of this for friends and my family for the packaging makes it so easy to bring around and so convenient to consume (no glass bottles to rid of).

When the folks at Hao Yi Kang reached out to me and asked if I was keen on reviewing the Lao Xie Zhen Premium Boiled Essence of Chicken. I jumped on the opportunity! I really enjoyed drinking the essence and I was looking forward to sharing the feedback I have on the essence with you.

Some key points on this premium boiled essence of chicken that’s useful to note:

Using traditional slow-boiling method, both micro-molecules (collagen, peptide, amino acids, ets) and macro-molecules (proteins) can be fully extracted from the chicken.

It is 100% natural (no preservatives, no additives, zero fats and cholesterol) and contains 18 types of amino acids.

The ingredients for this is free-range chicken and premium pork-ribs.

Who can consume this?

Best for pregnant moms as it helps in the growth of the baby. It can repair cells and tissues in the body and is helpful towards fetal support during pregnancy as well as wound healing during post-natal conditioning. It promoted post-natal milk secretion and can enhance the quality of the milk.

For students, elderly and working adults: The high protein content makes it ideal for daily nourishment and supplement during recuperation. It also helps to boost immune system and can combat fatigue.

I also liked that each packet of essence is packaged conveniently for room temperature storage, in a 4-layered opaque sachet exclusively imported from Japan. Similar to a baby bottle, the inner packaging material is tested with no plastic and heavy metal reside thus making it very safe to consume.

Shelf life can be stored up to 18 months after manufacturing without preservatives. Using Japan’s technology of high temperature and high-pressure sterilization sealing method to preserve the nutrients.

On preparation of the essence, it is really easy! All you need to do is to put the unopened sachet into a cup of hot water for 3 minutes, tear open the sachet and ta-dah, it’s ready to consume!

Love the convenience of the product and I will consider bringing it when we travel. Bub still likes her Asian meals so this essence will come in handy when she misses her soup with rice!

When should one take the chicken essence? I would highly recommend that you consume this in the morning before breakfast for the best effect. It really does help to boost energy levels and I don’t feel as tired. Do not consume this at night! I once made the mistake for I was tempted to drink it as a soup and it gone horribly wrong as I was kept awake for most of the night.

Moms will also be happy to know that the Lao Xie Zhen Premium Boiled Essence of Chicken can also be consumed by children above 2 years old. The Bub is really quite picky when it comes to trying out new foods. So when I had my essence ready and tore the packaging, she caught a whiff of the essence and was opened to trying a sip of it. She loved it and proceeded to gulp down spoonfuls of the essence after. Imagine my happiness! Granted that she is still young to be boosting her energy levels (in fact, she’s often bouncing off the walls), but continued consumption of the essence will help strengthen her immunity and that to me is way more important!

Voted 2018 best chicken essence for pre-natal and post-natal by Mummys Market Singapore, Lao Xie Zhen Premium Boiled Essence of Chicken from Hao Yi Kang definitely won our hearts over and has our vote for the best-tasting chicken essence! It makes great gifts for moms-to-be and new moms as well as a great perk-me-up for combating fatigue which is the state that I am currently in. Looking forward to more regular consumption too so as to strengthen my immunity.

Disclaimer : We received a box of Lao Xie Zhen Premium Chicken Essence (14 packets) from Hao Yi Kang for this review. No additional monetary rewards were given. All views expressed are purely of my own and written according to my experience in using the product. Any queries on the product should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.

Little girl is growing up way too fast. I’m sure this is a sentiment echoed by most parents. Though we spend most of our time together, a large part of the day is also spent at work/ school/ running errands, etc – getting through routines and schedules.

Her passport is due for renewal and I attempted to take a picture for submission. When I told her she needs to look at the camera and smile for the new photo as we needed to update her baby picture in her current passport. The poor kid burst out in tears and bawled “But I want to be a baby! I want the baby photo in the passport! I don’t want to be a big girl! I want to be a baby, otherwise you all won’t love me anymore!”

I hugged the kiddo tightly and reassured that she will always be my baby no matter how big she is. It took a while to convince her but she eventually calmed down. Seeing her react that way about growing up brought back memories for as a young girl, I also had similar issues growing up and growing old plus dying. I remembered bursting into tears for fear of my parents growing too old. But as the saying goes, time waits for no man. I can only store these memories in my heart.

And like my mom shared, little girl’s mannerism and character is like mine. I guess it really is like looking in the mirror and seeing a part of me in my little girl.

The Man’s travel which largely incorporates work and golf has been punishing and he has been zipping in and out of the country. Coupled with my work plus business, the only time we possibly spend with each other is the waking and resting moments of the day. With our anniversary just round the corner and endless work dinners, I didn’t think we would even make it out to celebrate. Not that I am whining, over the years, we just accept and make do with what we can.

So the dinner at our fave restaurant started with the best of intentions but went horribly wrong as I went on to pour out my feelings to the Man because you know, I just wanted a listening ear, some advice on how to sort out my problems and really, to move on. I was emotionally and mentally drained from all that has been going on but it was taking a toil on me, because I know that I can’t do anything much about it.

The conversation went horribly wrong with me in tears as I stared at this Man across the table who vividly reminded me of my dad when he got angry. The flared nostrils, that frustrated look on the face and the fast-moving hand gesturing that almost signaled that of flipping the dinner table over. At that instant, I morphed into a helpless woman and I stood up, walked away after taking a couple of deep breathes. I knew this was not how we wanted our evening to turn out. I also knew that he didn’t want to behave the way he did but he was probably exasperated with having to tell me time and time again the solution. I would have reacted probably better if it was down in a more amiable tone but perhaps with age, there isn’t time nor patience left when dealing with an adult who’s probably experiencing mid-life crisis.

But the lashing did wake me up, it was brutal and a bitter pill to swallow but perhaps I needed it. I can’t change the problem nor the people (because no one can and will change unless they want to) but I can surely change my behavior since I am in control of that. It’s not easy but I know I will be able to do this ultimately. I will be okay.

Came home to this special bundle from our fave folks over Our Lifestyle Shop gifting us with Eco-PY Flying Insect Killer Refills for the home. Super handy to have around given our living area is so prone to mozzies now that the rainy season is upon us!

I’ve also recommended friends and loved ones to check out products under Our Lifestyle Shop because they really work and are eco-friendly to use. Christmas is also the perfect time to share these products with loved ones and stock up on what you really love for the home for their specials are pretty much unbeatable! I do most of my stocking up in Dec too! Hehe.

Here’s what you need to do to gain access into Our Lifestyle Shop special Christmas closed door sales!! Register your interest and sign up here .

Well, pretty much in a flash if I may add. I can’t quite believe that 2018 is almost coming to an end and this year, my blog has remained largely inactive as I turned to Instagram to share more of my musings. At my peak, I’ve had over 4,000+ followers and I did want to achieve over 5,000 followers before the year ended. But then, one day, it struck me that I was just churning out content on Instagram for the sake of attracting new followers. The perks that came along with collabs and product sponsorships were definitely an attractive part of the package but I didn’t know if I wanted that.

While Instagram is a quick fix for blogging, the world of Instagram felt mind-boggling. As its name suggests, there was a need for instant gratification and validation from people who may or may not know me. It became a double-edged sword. I wasn’t comfortable revealing parts of my life to the people who don’t know me or who think they know me. Well, why give them food to fodor? I didn’t want the validation from people who think they know me. So one evening, I decided to cull my list of followers. I must say that my fingers hurt real bad after looking at my list and manually deleting the people who I didn’t know. No offense really but I just wanted a platform where I can share bits of myself openly without people talking behind my back. Well, like it or not, that’s life but I can limit how I want to share bits of my life.

So 2018 has been a year of revelation. One that I had struggled with – in my jobs (juggling a flex-work arrangement along with my business) and my friendships (hard to mix business with pleasure, but I’m learning along the way). My darling child continues to be a constant source of joy in my life and my husband, my constant source of hard truths in life.

Another month or so to wrap up 2018. It will be a crazy couple of weeks as the retail scene ramps up. But well, I’ve just gotta push on!

Read an article recently and it reached out to me. So just wanted to list down what was shared on key tips and lessons to being a good leader:

1) Have a very strong conviction – Believe in yourself. Everything starts and ends with you.

2) Lead by example – In management, we say words like ‘walk the talk.’ You can’t say something, and then do the opposite.

3) Have a holistic and integrated vision – Most of the businesses are people-driven. You are as good as your people. So everything should be centred on that.

4) Learn to embrace discontinuity – All of us love great results; it is definitely a high. But leadership spirit is about taking the good, the not-so-good and the bad in the same spirit. That’s the test of a leader.

5) Commanding your field with an eye of wisdom – Wisdom is not competence, or knowledge, or skill. It is something over and above that. Wisdom means that you, as an individual, take a backseat.

6) Work harder than everyone else – If you are a leader and leading by example, you must work really hard and learn constantly.

7) Be an inclusive person – Not just from a gender point of view but with everything else in our daily lives.

I’ve been feeling a tad bit emo lately that it’s started to take yet another toll on my body. I think that’s seriously not funny for I’ve been drifting in and out of falling sick for the past couple of months and I’m tired of falling sick already. Just when I think “hey, I’m better..” I fall sick again.

I’m naturally a worrier and an over-thinker (at times). These traits are such a horrible mix together and a recipe of a mental disaster. So before I turn another year older, I hope to pick myself out of this rut that I’m in and let go of the things/ people I can’t control to lead a better life for myself.